ISO 14620-4:2025
(Main)Space systems — Safety requirements — Part 4: Spacecraft assembly, integration and test
Space systems — Safety requirements — Part 4: Spacecraft assembly, integration and test
This document provides requirements for the safety management and operation of assembly, integration and test (AIT) activities related to spacecraft projects and applications including the responsibilities of the organization involved in the AIT operations for spacecraft products. This document provides a method to identify hazards, control and reduce safety risk to acceptable levels in the activities of spacecraft assembly, integration, testing, hoisting, logistics and handling. This document is applicable to space test centres and entities providing operating infrastructure and facilities for spacecraft AIT. It can serve as a reference for the AIT of the spacecraft system, its subsystems and equipment.
Systèmes spatiaux — Exigences de sécurité — Partie 4: Assemblage, intégration et test d'engins spatiaux
General Information
Standards Content (Sample)
International
Standard
ISO 14620-4
First edition
Space systems — Safety
2025-02
requirements —
Part 4:
Spacecraft assembly, integration
and test
Systèmes spatiaux — Exigences de sécurité —
Partie 4: Assemblage, intégration et test d'engins spatiaux
Reference number
© ISO 2025
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ii
Contents Page
Foreword .iv
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Abbreviated terms . 2
5 Safety organization . 2
5.1 General .2
5.2 Requirements for the safety organization .2
5.3 Safety representative .3
5.4 Personnel .3
6 Safety programme . 4
6.1 General .4
6.2 Hazard analysis.4
6.3 Safety risk assessment .5
6.4 Safety risk control .5
6.4.1 Purpose of safety risk control .5
6.4.2 Safety risk control measures .5
6.4.3 Safety critical items .5
6.5 Verification of safety risk control measures .6
6.6 Safety documentation .6
6.6.1 General .6
6.6.2 Safety summary records .6
6.6.3 Safety inspection records . .6
7 Safety requirements for AIT facilities and equipment . 7
7.1 Ground support equipment .7
7.2 Environmental conditions .7
7.3 Processes .7
8 Safety requirements for integration and mechanical performance testing . 8
8.1 Hazards to be considered .8
8.2 Measures to reduce safety risks .8
8.2.1 General .8
8.2.2 Integration of pyrotechnic devices .8
8.2.3 Integration of radioactive products .9
8.2.4 Mechanical performance testing .9
8.2.5 Hoisting .10
8.2.6 Logistics .10
9 Safety requirements for electrical performance testing .11
9.1 Hazards to be considered .11
9.2 Measures to reduce safety risks .11
10 Safety requirements for environmental testing .12
10.1 Hazards to be considered . 12
10.2 Measures to reduce safety risks . 12
10.2.1 General . 12
10.2.2 Thermal testing . 13
10.2.3 Vibration testing . 13
10.2.4 Acoustic testing . 13
10.2.5 Separation and deployment test .14
10.2.6 EMI/EMC measurement .14
Bibliography .15
iii
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
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The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are described
in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the different types
of ISO document should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the editorial rules of the
ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
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rights in respect thereof. As of the date of publication of this document, ISO had not received notice of (a)
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This document was prepared by Technical Committee 20, Aircraft and space vehicles, Subcommittee SC 14,
Space systems and operations.
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complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html.
iv
International Standard ISO 14620-4:2025(en)
Space systems — Safety requirements —
Part 4:
Spacecraft assembly, integration and test
1 Scope
This document provides requirements for the safety management and operation of assembly, integration
and test (AIT) activities related to spacecraft projects and applications including the responsibilities of the
organization involved in the AIT operations for spacecraft products.
This document provides a method to identify hazards, control and reduce safety risk to acceptable levels in
the activities of spacecraft assembly, integration, testing, hoisting, logistics and handling.
This document is applicable to space test centres and entities providing operating infrastructure and
facilities for spacecraft AIT. It can serve as a reference for the AIT of the spacecraft system, its subsystems
and equipment.
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes
requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references,
the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO 10795, Space systems — Programme management and quality — Vocabulary
ISO 14620-1, Space systems — Safety requirements — Part 1: System safety
ISO 14620-2, Space systems — Safety requirements — Part 2: Launch site operations
ISO 14625, Space systems — Ground support equipment for use at launch, landing or retrieval sites — General
requirements
ISO 17666, Space systems — Risk management
ISO 18322, Space systems — General management requirements for space test centres
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in ISO 10795 and the following apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www .iso .org/ obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at https:// www .electropedia .org/
3.1
logistics
science and practice of interconnecting, and finding the best way of goal attainment, for bringing material
objects or living beings in sufficient quantity to the right place in the right time.
[SOURCE: ISO 5127:2017, 3.1.2.26]
3.2
operator
governmental or non-governmental entities, international organization, or natural person carrying out a
space operation independently and under its responsibility.
[SOURCE: ISO 14620-2:2019, 3.15]
3.3
risk
undesirable situation or circumstance that has both a likelihood of occurring and a potential negative
consequence on a project
Note 1 to entry: Risks arise from uncertainty due to lack of predictability or control of events. Risks are inherent to
any project and can arise at any time during the project life cycle; reducing these uncertainties reduces the risks.
[SOURCE: ISO 17666:2016, 3.1.12]
3.4
space test centre
complete entity including the organization which provides, maintains, develops and operates test facilities
for space project and applications including accompanied services
[SOURCE: ISO 18322:2017, 3.7]
3.5
safety risk
measure of the potential consequences of a hazard considering the probability of the associated mishap, the
harm caused to people and the damage caused to public and private property and the environment
Note 1 to entry: The safety risk is defined to be differentiated from political, financial, industrial, project, and other
risks (3.3).
Note 2 to entry: An example of a safety risk is the expected number of casualties.
[SOURCE: ISO 14620-2:2019, 3.19]
3.6
safety representative
representative from the space test centre (3.4) management with designated responsibility for safety
[SOURCE: ISO 18322:2017, 3.5, modified — Note 1 to entry has been removed.]
4 Abbreviated terms
AIT assembly, integration and test
GSE ground support equipment
5 Safety organization
5.1 General
The safety organization shall be established to organize, inspect and implement safety activities in the AIT
process.
5.2 Requirements for the safety organization
The following requirements apply to the safety organization.
a) The safety organization shall be established in accordance with ISO 14620-1.
b) Operations at the launch site shall conform to the safety requirements specified in ISO 14620-2.
c) Ground support equipment used for launch, landing or retrieval operations shall meet the general
requirements specified in ISO 14625.
d) Space test centres shall meet the general management requirements specified in ISO 18322.
e) The safety organization shall ensure that safety requirements and related AIT tasks are appropriately
integrated into all project plans and procedures.
f) The implementation of safety requirements shall be verified at defined intervals.
5.3 Safety representative
The following requirements apply to the safety representative.
a) The safety representatives shall coordinate with all relevant bodies, including the safety launcher
authority, medical boards, radiation protection committees, industrial safety organizations and
environmental protection agencies.
b) The safety representative:
1) shall have the right to obtain all safety-related information;
2) shall report to the project manager;
3) shall have access to top management;
4) shall have the authority to report safety issues independently;
5) shall not be restricted by any organization in any aspect of safety.
5.4 Personnel
The following requirements apply to operating personnel involved in spacecraft AIT.
a) Personnel shall be qualified in fundamental safety skills related to inspection, testing, maintenance and
operation in the AIT process.
b) Personnel performing or controlling hazardous operations, or handling, using or transporting hazardous
materials, shall be trained and qualified with the necessary knowledge, skills and, if specified in the job
description, abilities to perform the job safely.
NOTE This rule applies to tasks that pose an immediate danger to the operator (death or injury) if not
performed correctly, or that can endanger others nearby (death or injury) or cause damage to surrounding
equipment or facilities.
c) Personnel shall have successfully completed safety and technical training and shall be familiar with the
safety measures, safety plans and responsibilities associated with the operations they perform.
d) All contractor personnel engaged in potentially hazardous operations or the handling of hazardous
materials shall be qualified through similar training as described in item c).
e) Operators shall wear dust resistant and anti-static work clothes, safety helmets and safety belts.
f) During spacecraft integration, operators shall wear:
1) split suit anti-static work clothes with tight cuffs and without pockets and buttons;
2) anti-static wristbands according to the needs of work.
g) When handling thermal control materials or other sensitive spacecraft products, operators shall wear
masks and anti-static gloves or finger covers.
h) Operators shall wear protective equipment in the work area.
i) Unauthorized personnel shall not enter the work area.
6 Safety programme
6.1 General
a) The safety programme:
1) shall be established in accordance with ISO 14620-1:2018, Clause 4, to ensure that during AIT
activities, the safety of spacecraft products, personnel (including customers and visitors), ground
support equipment, facilities and the environment is fully addressed, taking full responsibility for
safety performance during products testing;
2) shall take into account the applicable safety requirements of either the spacecraft or the project, or both;
NOTE The objective of the safety programme is to ensure that all safety risks associated with the AIT,
handling and logistics of spacecraft products are adequately identified, assessed, minimized, controlled
and finally accepted. The safety programme includes the identification of hazards, assessment of safety
risks, implementation of control measures for unacceptable risks, reassessment of risks following control
measures and the reduction of risks to an acceptable level.
3) shall ensure that all hazards related to spacecraft AIT are systematically identified, risks are
assessed, and where risks are unacceptable, control measures are recommended to eliminate or
mitigate the hazards.
b) Information, data and analysis results obtained during hazard analysis and safety risk assessment shall
be communicated to design, operations and management teams in a timely manner to implement early
measures for effectively ensuring safety.
c) Interfaces shall be established between the safety programme and other plans and programmes (e.g.
AIT, handling, reliability, quality assurance) to integrate relevant data and information into hazard
analysis and safety risk assessment.
6.2 Hazard analysis
The purpose of the hazard analysis is to identify, at an early stage, hazards related to spacecraft AIT that can
pose a threat to the safety of personnel, spacecraft products and facilities.
The AIT phase hazard analysis shall cover at least the following aspects:
a) hazardous materials (e.g. propellants, gunpowder, explosive devices, toxic substances, power supplies,
radioactive materials, and high-pressure gas sources);
b) the environment in which the system operates, including the natural environment and induced
environments (e.g. vibration, shock, extreme temperatures, vacuum, electromagnetic interference);
c) system functional faults or abnormal operating conditions;
d) defects in safety-critical instructions and control software;
e) risks that may arise or be introduced during AIT, handling or logistics;
f) incorrect operation;
g) the storage, handling and transportation of hazardous materials;
h) safety-related equipment, safety protection devices and other safety assurance measures;
i) analysis of safety requirements and lessons learned from similar previous operations.
6.3 Safety risk assessment
The purpose of the safety risk assessment is to analyse the identified hazards related to spacecraft AIT by
evaluating the risk level based on severity and occurrence probability and to determine the need for risk
reduction measures.
The following requirements apply for safety risk assessment.
a) The safety risk assessment shall be performed for each identified hazard in accordance with ISO 17666.
b) The safety risk assessment shall determine the risk level for each identified hazard based on severity
and occurrence probability.
c) Hazard severity shall be classified as catastrophic, critical, marginal and negligible in accordance with
the definitions in ISO 14620-1.
d) The safety risk assessment shall determine the acceptability of each risk based on the safety policy and
accordingly, identify the need for control measures.
e) A safety risk assessment report shall be prepared; and the results of the assessment shall be considered
a key element in the special safety review to ensure that any remaining risks are acceptable.
6.4 Safety risk control
6.4.1 Purpose of safety risk control
The purpose of safety risk control is to reduce unacceptable safety risks or safety-critical items to an
acceptable level.
6.4.2 Safety risk control measures
For the selection and imple
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